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Jerry Brown touts solar power as today's Hanukkah 'miracle'
SacBee: Capitol Alert ^ | 12/19/11 | Torey Van Oot

Posted on 12/19/2011 6:01:03 PM PST by SmithL

Gov. Jerry Brown sees a modern day message for proponents of solar power in the story of Hanukkah. Speaking at the Capitol Menorah Lighting this morning, the Democratic governor cast the eight-day Jewish holiday, which begins tomorrow, as a good time to reflect on "the whole idea that we're running out of oil so we need a miracle."

(Excerpt) Read more at blogs.sacbee.com ...


TOPICS: Government; US: California
KEYWORDS: caenergy; goldenstate; hanukkah; jerrybrown; moonbeam; solar
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To: SmithL
Solar power is now competitive with other energy sources in equatorial areas with little cloud cover, i.e. high 'solar irradiance', where other energy sources must be imported. Singapore is an example. This recent shift has been caused by a dramatic drop in the cost of Chinese solar panels.

Solar energy is still uneconomic by a wide margin in temperate climates.

21 posted on 12/19/2011 7:14:24 PM PST by Praxeologue
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To: SmithL

Self-certified dementia?!! Who’da thunk!!!!


22 posted on 12/19/2011 7:17:16 PM PST by mo
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To: Farmer Dean

“...especially his mind”

Jerry’s “mind” is long ago “wasted’....


23 posted on 12/19/2011 7:28:51 PM PST by mo
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To: SmithL

Isn’t it a tad insensitive for a gentile politician to hijack a Jewish religious festival for political purposes?


24 posted on 12/19/2011 7:31:23 PM PST by DManA
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To: Kennard
Solar energy is still uneconomic by a wide margin in temperate climates

until they can put a solar collector, the size of a sunroof, on top of my car, which will power it 95% of the time (battery for the other 5%) don't bother me with nonsense. Domestic drilling for energy would eliminate foreign reliance and just the THREAT to do so would lower oil prices by 60% overnight!!!

25 posted on 12/19/2011 8:21:49 PM PST by terycarl (lurking, but well informed)
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To: blueunicorn6

Sure, he can be ‘that stupid’-—remember “there is no stautue of limitatiions on stupidity”


26 posted on 12/19/2011 9:55:52 PM PST by cmomm44
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To: SmithL

Still “Moonbeam” after all these years.


27 posted on 12/19/2011 11:27:35 PM PST by Freedom_Is_Not_Free (We be fooked.)
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To: SmithL

I disagree with Moonbeam as far as policy goes, but I thought the analogy was quite clever. I doubt anyone here would be screaming blasphemy if the opposite foot was shod.


28 posted on 12/20/2011 4:10:36 AM PST by CalvaryJohn (What is keeping that damned asteroid?)
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To: SmithL
a good time to reflect on "the whole idea that we're running out of oil

Absolutely untrue

29 posted on 12/20/2011 4:27:13 AM PST by Teacher317 ('Tis time to fear when tyrants seem to kiss.)
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To: SmithL

What a moron!


30 posted on 12/21/2011 3:17:00 AM PST by sheik yerbouty ( Make America and the world a jihad free zone!)
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To: SmithL

What a moron!


31 posted on 12/21/2011 3:17:22 AM PST by sheik yerbouty ( Make America and the world a jihad free zone!)
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To: terycarl
until they can put a solar collector, the size of a sunroof, on top of my car,

Well, let's say you live in an ideal location in the middle of the desert. We'll make the panel a bit bigger, 1 meter by 1 meter. You will get 7 kWh per day of solar energy. Let's assume there is 25% efficiency (very optimistic considering today's technology and your panel won't be aimed at the sun). Now you have less than 2kWh of energy per day to work with.

Now let's look at gasoline, it contains 33 kWh of raw energy per gallon. The engine is about 20% efficient and 10-15% after adding drive train and other sources of friction. That means 3kWh of energy to move your car forward from each gallon.

So the equivalent energy of 2/3 gallon of gasoline is collected by parking the car in full sun for a day. So figure on a 20 mile round trip per day and that's using lots of ideal assumptions. Oh and your idea of using battery for only 5%, forget about that, it will be more like 95% from battery.

32 posted on 12/21/2011 4:10:34 AM PST by palmer (Before reading this post, please send me $2.50)
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To: palmer
Well, let's say you live in an ideal location in the middle of the desert. We'll make the panel a bit bigger, 1 meter by 1 meter. You will get 7 kWh per day of solar energy. Let's assume there is 25% efficiency (very optimistic considering today's technology and your panel won't be aimed at the sun). Now you have less than 2kWh of energy per day to work with.

you'll notice that I pooh-poohed the entire notion and said that until and unless they can come up with a miniature collector that will provide this power, I wasn't interested at all. Someday in the distant future, such technology will probably be possible, but for the time being, I want this gov't to get the hell out of the way of people who want to drill for OIL!!

33 posted on 12/21/2011 12:53:17 PM PST by terycarl (lurking, but well informed)
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To: terycarl
What I was saying is the technology will never be available because the sun doesn't provide enough energy. Even if the panels were 100% efficient, same with the battery to store it and electric motors you will get the same energy as a couple gallons of gas from leaving your car in the sun all day.

In a nutshell solar can;t do what you want, the sun is too weak. Lots of people look at solar panels on roofs and think that it would be cool to sell power to the power company andor be self sufficient. But it's a lie, solar doesn't produce enough power to run a house, those panels are being subsidiy other rate payers who are buying the solar power for full price during the day when it isn't needed and getting regular price power at night when their panels produce nothing.

While I'm at it, I might as well dump on wind power, it is also too diffuse and unreliable for most uses. An analogy to your solar car would be a wind powered car, ain't gonna happen ever.

34 posted on 12/21/2011 1:50:04 PM PST by palmer (Before reading this post, please send me $2.50)
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